Bonding
by Teela's Snakestaff
Summary: *One shot*. Legendary Defender Universe. Pidge and Shiro share stories of Pidge's family. Just something I couldn't get out of my head after binge-watching the new Voltron on Netflix!


Shiro entered the training deck's break room looking for his fellow paladins. There was still time before they reached the Balmera and he felt that some extra training would not go amiss. Looking around the empty room, he realized that the others did not seem to share his opinion. With a shrug he began walking across the room to continue his search. As he walked past the lowered seating area, he could just see the back of Pidge's head. She was sitting on the floor looking at something he couldn't see.

"Pidge, I'm glad I found you. Do you know where the others are? I thought we could…" Shiro began, but trailed off as Pidge turned her face to look at him fully. Her eyes were red and puffy. She'd been crying again. The movement revealed her holding the photograph of her with her brother, Matt. "Oh, Pidge." Shiro said softly. He climbed over the back of the seats and sat down beside her on the floor.

"Hey, Shiro," Pidge finally said.

"I know you miss them. I do too. But torturing yourself like this isn't healthy."

"No, I know," she answered as she swiped at her eyes. "It's just that it is Matt's birthday today. Well, at least it is assuming Arus' time cycle is the same as Earth's. Of course, flying through space, who knows what day it really is. Still, Matt's birthday was only a few days away when we found the Blue Lion, so as far as I can tell, that would make it today. Whenever he and dad were away on missions, mom and I would bake a cake and have a little party for them on their birthdays. Then when they would return, we'd have an even bigger celebration for all the holidays and anniversaries that were missed. Mom must be so worried about all of us right now." Pidge continued to stare at the picture.

Shiro held out his hand, silently requesting the photo from Pidge. After several moments, she surrender the treasure to him. He stared at the photo for several moments, once more feeling the guilt welling up within him. No matter what anyone said he knew he was to blame for their capture and continued imprisonment.

"I'd never seen explorers like them. They were both so excited about the Kerberos mission. Even something as simple as extracting ice samples had them both giddy. Others I'd piloted missions for were pretty well numb to the idea of exploration, but not your dad and brother. They truly were space explorers in every sense of the word." He handed the photo back to Pidge.

She smiled and accepted the picture back. Shiro found his breath catching as he looked at her. Despite the tomboy appearance necessary for her earlier disguise, Katie Holt really was a pretty girl.

"You know, I've often wondered why Dad didn't invite you to dinner before the mission. He always invited the other pilots home for dinner. He firmly believed that your crew was your family."

"Actually, he did invite me. Matt told me the next day that the dinner had to be postponed. Then it was time to leave for Kerberos."

"Oh, Matt!" Pidge exclaimed, exasperatedly. "Ever since a boy in his class named Taki told him that I was cute, Matt would do whatever he could to keep guys away from the house. For the past year he seem to make it his mission to 'protect' me from 'those brainless space jocks'. His words." She stroked her brother's image fondly. Then she looked at Shiro and said, "I am sorry he lied to you. It would have been nice getting to know each other under better circumstances."

"It's ok," Shiro said, smiling. "If I had a sister, I probably would have done the same thing. And I think we've been doing just fine getting to know each other." He climbed back to his feet and then offered his hand to help her up. "Come on, let's find the others. We can work on 'getting to know' each other better in a battle simulation."

Pidge smiled and accepted his offer. She stashed her treasured photo away and began walking with Shiro to the exit. "I'll bet Hunk is in the kitchen again."

Shiro laughed, "You're probably right. Come on, I'll race you there!"


End file.
